Harry Potter fans have successfully campaigned to change plans for a new power line, which would have carved through the site of Dobby’s grave.
The memorial, on a beach in the Welsh county of Pembrokeshire, marks the spot in the Harry Potter films where the beloved house-elf was buried. Hundreds of fans make a pilgrimage to the site each year, leaving behind painted stones or items of clothing in tribute to the fictional character.
But while a popular tourist spot, the grave risked being disturbed by plans for the £430 million ($580 million) Greenlink interconnector, an undersea power cable that will run from the U.K. mainland over to Ireland.
Speaking to BBC News, project manager Simon Ludlam said that opposition to the plans had turned into a public relations nightmare after word of the disruption emerged via a podcast, prompting “hundreds of calls.”
“I said ‘he’s a fictitious character in a fictitious book, the whole thing is fictitious what are you talking about?’,” Ludlam recalled of his initial response, before being told that the matter was in fact “very, very serious.”
Ultimately, the Greenlink interconnector has now been re-routed, ensuring the memorial will remain. “A lot of people were very happy about that, and the project is now going [ahead] and Dobby’s happy,” Ludlam added.
Archaeological excavations carried out on the new route instead revealed Bronze Age activity likely linked to actual, real-life burials from up to 4,000 years ago.
“Actually we went quite close to some real Bronze Age remains, but we avoided Dobby’s grave,” Ludlam concluded.
Painted stones left on Dobby’s memorial include messages such as “Dobby you are free now,” and “Dobby lives in our hearts and our socks.” The U.K.’s National Trust, which owns the site, has previously asked fans not to leave socks behind as the area is a site of special environmental interest.
With the site’s future now safely secured, the spot could potentially be used for Dobby’s grave again in the upcoming HBO Harry Potter TV reboot. Though, thankfully for Dobby, the series likely won’t get around to filming that particular moment for another decade, with episodes expected to be released from this Christmas until the early 2040s.
Image credits: Warner Bros., Matthew Horwood/Getty Images.
Tom Phillips is IGN’s News Editor. You can reach Tom at tom_phillips@ign.com or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social
